Idem (The same, Likewise)

Idem

LATIN PRONOUN

Meaning and English translation 🔖

1. The same
🇬🇧 The same thing; used to avoid repetition in lists, bibliographic citations, and similar contexts.
🇮🇹 La stessa cosa; usato per evitare ripetizioni in elenchi, citazioni bibliografiche e simili.

2. Similarly, Likewise
🇬🇧 With adverbial value, it means similarly, likewise, in the same way.
🇮🇹 Con valore avverbiale, significa ugualmente, pure, nello stesso modo.

Example sentences 💬

A: Propongo di posticipare il progetto di una settimana.
B: Idem, il tempo è troppo poco.
A: I suggest postponing the project by a week.
B: Same here, there's too little time.

A: Prenderò le lasagne.
B: Idem, sembrano deliziose!
A: I'll have the lasagne.
B: Same here, they look delicious!.

A: Come hai fatto a dimenticare il compleanno di tua mamma?!
B: Tu idem lo scorso anno, quindi hai poco da parlare…
A: How could you forget your mom's birthday?!
B: You did the same last year, so you have little room to talk..

Il Primo Ministro ha mentito sulle tasse; idem sulle pensioni.
The Prime Minister lied about taxes; likewise about pensions.

Where does the word idem come from? 🔎

Idem comes from Latin, composed of is [that] and the particle -dem, meaning "precisely".

Did you know that... 🤓

Impress your italian friends with curious facts about Italy and its culture

Carbonara with potatoes

Last night I was out with some foreign friends visiting Rome, and I took them to a restaurant to taste typical Roman dishes. I spent about ten minutes translating the menu and giving advice. When the waiter arrived to take our orders, I waited for the guests to order first.

Ivy: "Carbonara".
Felipe: "Carbonara".
Eriko: "Carbonara".

When it was my turn, I said: "Idem with potatoes. And also some charcuterie to share, please."

The waiter wrote everything down in his notebook, took back the menus, and went to the kitchen. When I met my friends' gaze again, I noticed the amazement in their eyes, mixed with a feeling of betrayal. I could read their thoughts, in order:

1. Does carbonara with potatoes exist?!
2. If it's better than the regular one, why didn't he tell us anything in the ten minutes he spent explaining the menu?

I tried to hold back a laugh seeing their confused faces. "Don't worry," I said, "carbonara with potatoes doesn't exist. It's just a saying."

Their looks changed from confusion to relief, but curiosity was evident. "So what did you order?" Eriko asked. "I ordered carbonara, like you," I explained. "The expression 'idem with potatoes' is a playful way to say 'the same thing', but with a bit more emphasis."

Since in that restaurant it takes about 20 minutes to cook carbonara, I took the opportunity to tell them the origin of this curious expression.

"From the mid-19th century, in Italian restaurant and trattoria menus, since the main dish was rarely modified and what changed was the side dish, to save space on the menu, they used the word 'idem' to indicate the same dish but with a different side. Potatoes were one of the most common sides, so it was often written 'idem with potatoes'."

My friends listened attentively, starting to understand.

"Over time," I continued, "this phrase left the menus and entered common language as a playful way to say 'the same thing', but emphasizing repetitiveness and lack of imagination."

"Italians, on the other hand," Felipe said, "have too much imagination when it comes to sayings and idioms. It's really difficult to understand them all."

For the rest of the dinner, we continued to talk about Italian idiomatic expressions, comparing them with those from their countries (and there are hilarious sayings in all languages of the world!). It was an interesting way to explore the nuances that are difficult to learn when studying a foreign language.

PS: The carbonara was excellent. And the charcuterie... idem!